They should come out today. Expect to see the Hawks playing Wed and Fri as the UC is booked on Thursday for a potential game 6 for the Bulls.

Ok, cool. Don't know if I could wait till tomorrow morning or afternoon, but didn't know if the OTT/BOS game today would really screw things up since the seeding can still change in the EC based on the game today.

Ok, cool. Don't know if I could wait till tomorrow morning or afternoon, but didn't know if the OTT/BOS game today would really screw things up since the seeding can still change in the EC based on the game today.

Fingers crossed for no day games for us.

Unfortunately I think Hawks-Wild offers the biggest ratings potential in the West for NBC. NYR-Wash will be on as much as NBC can get them on and then we all know about their love affair with Pittsburgh.

Unfortunately I think Hawks-Wild offers the biggest ratings potential in the West for NBC. NYR-Wash will be on as much as NBC can get them on and then we all know about their love affair with Pittsburgh.

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking as well. Hopefully it is at least a 3 EST start, and not one of those awful noon starts on a Sunday.

Hawks in 6...Wild will sneak a couple out of us, I see Minny putting up a better fight then most are giving them credit to do. Happy with the matchup, but like the saying goes, be careful what you wish for.

this Minny team has highend talent that at any time can take over a game. Do not take this team lightly as they are more skilled than the Yotes were last year with the potential for equal footing at the goalie position (Backstrom has shown he can dominate at times).

Looking forward to an exciting series as the Xcel center is a fun atmosphere for playoff hockey.

Hawks in 6...Wild will sneak a couple out of us, I see Minny putting up a better fight then most are giving them credit to do. Happy with the matchup, but like the saying goes, be careful what you wish for.

this Minny team has highend talent that at any time can take over a game. Do not take this team lightly as they are more skilled than the Yotes were last year with the potential for equal footing at the goalie position (Backstrom has shown he can dominate at times).

Looking forward to an exciting series as the Xcel center is a fun atmosphere for playoff hockey.

Yeah any team can get hot at any time but that Wild team just hasn't looked good in a while. And the Hawks have been the most consistent team all year, a team that shows up (almost) ever night.

Hawks have better high end talent, they have more forward depth, they have more defensive depth, and at this point you can't really say Backstrom is that much better than Crawford.

I could definitely see the argument. I've been a big Pirri detractor, but it's hard to deny a guy that won the AHL scoring title. Hopefully he has a good summer and comes into camp ready to win a the 2nd line centre spot.

Not sure what you mean by "right now" but in terms of readiness to contribute to the NHL and I have watched 15+ AHL games which may not mean much but my evaluation is very different and many might not agree but here goes:

1. Smith/Labah (Smith has been on a tear lately and is most ready IMO)
2. Morin/Hayes (Will benefit from some NHL time and are almost ready)
3. Pirri (Still lacks intensity when without the puck / lazy on the back check)
4. Clendening/Stanton (Clen needs D work/Stan ready for #6 D roll and still 23)
5. Teravainen (Just a guess as I cant evaluate what I cant see)
6. Denault (from what I saw the 2 games watched not ready yet but still young)
7. McNeil (Same as Denault)

I like to rank prospects based on a mix of talent/upside and risk of reaching said upside.

For instance, Danault and McNeill both have lower ceilings than Pirri (fringe 2nd line/quality 3rd liners vs. quality top-6 forward), but both are far more likely to reach their projections, therefore they go ahead of Pirri. Teravainen has the highest upside, a potential 1st line winger, outweighing most reasonable risk of never being an NHLer (which, I doubt happens).. etc.

I like to rank prospects based on a mix of talent/upside and risk of reaching said upside.

For instance, Danault and McNeill both have lower ceilings than Pirri (fringe 2nd line/quality 3rd liners vs. quality top-6 forward), but both are far more likely to reach their projections, therefore they go ahead of Pirri. Teravainen has the highest upside, a potential 1st line winger, outweighing most reasonable risk of never being an NHLer (which, I doubt happens).. etc.

Hmm. I don't agree with this at all. Lower ceiling guys who are further from the NHL...those are guys that should be ranked lower than guys with longer track records of success (Pirri & Morin) who are closer to the NHL. I just don't see how you could argue that McNeill & Danault are more likely to be quality NHL'ers considering what Pirri & Morin have accomplished in the AHL over the past two seasons, at ages 20-22.

TT is the Hawks #1 prospect at this point, I agree there. He is a kid playing in a professional league and producing.

I was so hoping that we would be the ones that you beat in the first round. I do think, however, that we would have given you a hell of a run for your money. You guys have pwned us for some time now, but that could have been an epic first round series.

As much as we all hate each other during the regular season, I always root for the Central teams in the play-offs, so take care of those posers from Minny in four. They are just lucky we ran out of regular season to overtake them.